The Belle of New York

The Belle of New York is a musical play in two acts by Hugh Morton (1865-1916, libretto)[1] and Gustav Kerker (1857-1923, music)[2].

The original text

A musical about a Salvation Army girl who reforms a spendthrift, makes a great sacrifice and finds true love, the play opened in the Casino Theatre, New York on 28 September 1897, produced by George W. Lederer.

Translations and adaptations

Rewritten and performed on Broadway as The Whirl of New York in 1921. The original was also filmed twice (1919 and 1952).

Performance history in South Africa

Tuesday, November 13, 1900: Performed by Hall's Australian Juveniles at the Port Elizabeth Opera House.

1902: Performed in the Opera House, Cape Town, by the Mouillot Company, under the auspices of Frank de Jongh and featuring William Cromwell as the "Polite Lunatic".

1903: Performed again in the Opera House, Cape Town, by the Mouillot Company, under the auspices of Frank de Jongh, as part of a season of musical comedy and light opera beginning in December of 1902 and running into 1903.

Sources

Eastern Province Herald, November 8, 1900.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Belle_of_New_York_(musical)

https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/the-belle-of-new-york-454016

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._M._S._McLellan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Kerker

D.C. Boonzaier. 1923. "My playgoing days – 30 years in the history of the Cape Town stage", in SA Review, 9 March and 24 August 1923. (Reprinted in Bosman 1980: pp. 374-439.)

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1912. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 411, 414

Go to ESAT Bibliography